The quest to discover a bag holder of simple design capable of retaining the bag with its mouth in the opened position while providing for the simple and efficient replacement of a filled bag has led to the development of numerous types of apparatus attempting to fulfill these requirements. Representative patents in the general area of bag holders include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,233,854; 3,529,766; 3,603,542; 3,684,225; 3,841,592; 3,861,630; 3,870,261; and 3,942,832. The vast majority of the above-listed prior art clearly demonstrates the two primary drawbacks with which bag holders have been confronted to date. The first of these difficulties is a lack of simplicity directly resulting in a tedious replacement operation when one is confronted with a filled bag. Prime examples of this problem are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,233,854, wherein the difficulties encountered in loading the bag holder of this design with a fresh bag are revealed by the inclusion of small pins or spikes upon which the bag is impaled during the loading operation; U.S. Pat. No. 3,529,766, which utilizes multiple, entwined rods around which the bag mouth must be partially wrapped and a stop mechanism, all of which are substantially enclosed within a container to support and house the bag; U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,524, wherein an empty bag is loaded by wrapping the edge of its mouth around a loop which must first be pivoted upward and then lowered while the loader retains the bag mouth in place and U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,360, which requires the mouth of the bag to encircle a flexible loop with the loop then slipped over retaining members which are attached to a wall. Additionally, this design requires that the loop and bag members be separated and reunited via the encircling procedure during each loading.
A second drawback of the bag holder art has been the susceptibility of a loaded bag to unplanned detachment from the holding apparatus with a probable result being the scattering of the contents. Prime examples of this shortcoming are illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 3,684,225, whereby the major means of bag retention is corner projections or abrasions on the bag retainer loop and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,841,592 and 3,942,832, in which the bag is retained in its proper position by an elastic band cooperating with a firm grooved hoop support structure. Of course, the elastic band could easily become displaced or dislodged or, as a matter of fact, broken.
Accordingly, one important object of the present invention is to provide an improved bag holder which obviates these prior art difficulties.
Another important object of the present invention is to provide an improved bag holder a new means to maintain the bag in the open position yet not being susceptible to unintentional removal.
Another important object of the present invention is to provide an improved bag holder which may be both loaded and unloaded in a quick and easy manner.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a bag holder that is easily fabricated in different sizes and shapes and is also attachable to different means of support such as a wall or car dashboard.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a bag holder which is relatively simple in construction and that can be manufactured in a relatively inexpensive manner while being rugged in design.